Competing on a budget
For many, competing is the ultimate goal but it can pack a punch when it comes to cost. Entry fees, travel expenses and more, all add up so we’ve done a little digging to see what can be done to help your competition budget go a little further.
Go online
If you’re eager to compete but need to save money or are struggling for transport, online competitions are just the thing. Many are dressage competitions but you can find showing, jumping, in-hand and fun classes. The dressage tests go right up to Prix St Georges level and with your results you get much more than just a score – you’ll get tips and encouragement too. The tests are judged by BD judges and you get prize money and a rosette. There are rules around what tack you can and can’t use but nothing too restrictive. Also, you mostly don’t need to wear competition kit. It’s a simple idea. You enter, video yourself riding the test or doing a round of jumps, etc. upload this to the YouTube channel by the class cut off point and wait for the results. The best thing, of course, is you can keep riding your test until you’re happy with it. For more information on competing online, visit www.interdressage.com or www.dressageanywhere.com
Stay unaffiliated
Unless you have ambitions to progress up the levels in your chosen discipline, putting points or money on your horse, you can save cash by staying within the unaffiliated structure. You won’t need to be a member of any society and entry fees are cheaper. Many unaffiliated competitions are run at the same venues as affiliated, use affiliated judges and follow strict safety rules. This is the ideal situation. Some venues, however, are not run as well, so our advice is to choose wisely.
A£liation is important if you want to qualify for regional and national events or if you think it will add to the desirability of your horse for selling or breeding, otherwise consider working your way through the una£liated structure.
Lend a hand
To save money on competing why not give volunteering a go? For una£liated and general competitions, you can often get free entry in return for your time, knocking loads off your competing bill. Tasks can include warm-up duties, making tea, helping to build courses and fence judging. Not only will you get money off, but you could learn a lot too – writing for a dressage judge, for instance, can be a great insight into what they’re looking for and how they use the scoring system.